A transit police officer convicted of brutally beating of a university student in Vancouver five years ago has collected nearly half a million dollars in salary since the assault, and remains on the public payroll.

The innocent victim, who was a University of British Columbia varsity football player, was punched in the head 10 times and hit with a baton 11 times by officers at the Rupert SkyTrain Station in August 2011.

But few details about the attack were shared with the public before Const. Edgardo Diaz-Rodriguez’s trial, which wrapped up just two weeks ago when he was sentenced to probation for assault causing bodily harm.

Former B.C. solicitor general Kash Heed said it’s unacceptable that people weren’t told about the incident when it happened. He also questioned why it took so long to bring the officer to justice: while the civilian-run Independent Investigations Office took eight months to investigate a recent police assault, the New Westminster Police Department spent 2.5 years investigating Diaz-Rodriguez.

“For five years he was placed on administrative leave. I have to ask the governance of the transit police where they were on this particular issue,” Heed said.

“Where was the discipline here?”

Documents from Diaz-Rodriguez’s trial also reveal he’d previously been found to have an issue with unnecessary aggression.

An evaluation report from Sgt. Fred Thompson, issued two years before the SkyTrain beating, said the officer “has lost his patience on more than one occasion dealing with some suspects” and “should be monitored closely.”

The report said Diaz-Rodriguez failed his Use of Force Options exam the first time as well. He passed on his second attempt, but incorrectly answered a question about when it’s appropriate to use a baton.

“Let me tell you, the Force Options exam is not difficult. You’ve been trained through your blocks at the Justice Institute of British Columbia to know that,” Heed said.

Transit police are under a different chief than they were in 2011, and spokeswoman Anne Drennan said officers involved in a similar incident today would be fired.

“Under the chief today, Chief Doug Lepard, and his executive, very different decisions would have been made,” Drennan said.

CTV News spoke with the interim chief at the time of the assault, Andy Hobbs, but he could not say why the force decided to keep paying Diaz-Rodriguez.

“I don’t remember dealing with it, and it doesn’t ring any bells at all,” Hobbs said.

It’s still possible that Diaz-Rodriguez could be fired. Because of his conviction, two new Police Act processes have been launched that could result in his dismissal.

But Heed estimated if the officer continues drawing a full salary during those investigations, and factoring in legal fees, the total cost to taxpayers could end up being in the $1 million range.

With a report from CTV Vancouver’s Jon Woodward